Saddam Hussein fell. Then violence in Iraq spiralled

FILE PHOTO: The site of a twin suicide bombing attack in a central market is seen in Baghdad, Iraq January 21, 2021. REUTERS/Thaier al-Sudani/File Photo

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - When U.S.-led forces toppled Saddam Hussein in 2003, Adel Amer celebrated what he thought marked the end of two decades of war and isolation under sanctions that had brought Iraq and its people to their knees.

"I was dancing like crazy and couldn't believe Saddam was gone. I felt like a bird unleashed from a cage," Amer said.